Maharashtra allocates Rs.10 crore for state residents stranded in Uttarakhand

Mumbai, June 19 (IANS) Moved by the plight of the people from Maharashtra stranded in flood-hit Uttarakhand, the state government Wednesday announced allocation of Rs.10 crore for their relief.

This amount would be utilized to arrange for helicopters, food, medicines and clothes and to bring them back to their home state, Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan said here.

According to information available, at least 1,353 pilgrims and tourists from all over Maharashtra have been stranded in different parts of Uttarakhand and surrounding areas hit by the massive floods in the past couple of days.

While the state has made contact with a majority of them, officials are still making efforts to get in touch with 334 whose current whereabouts are not yet known.

On Tuesday, the state government had set up a special cell in New Delhi headed by a team of senior officers to co-ordinate relief and rescue operations of the stranded people from the state.

Chavan said that two more such cells have been opened in Dehradun and Haridwar for co-ordinating the relief efforts.

A team of senior government officials from Thane and Raigad have also left for the affected regions to help in the efforts and also trace out the remaining 334 tourists, he added.

Chavan said he was in regular touch with the officials from the army, the disaster teams and Uttarakhand Chief Minister Vijay Bahuguna in this regard.

All officials have been instructed not to leave their bases until the last person from Maharashtra has been found and brought back here safely.

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